Motherboard Features

We'll begin with a brief overview of the features before we move into the individual motherboard reviews. The following table offers a quick breakdown of the features provided.

Motherboard Specifications
Foxconn C51-XEM2AA Gigabyte GA-M59SLI-S5
Market Segment Enthusiast - SLI (2x16) Enthusiast - SLI (2x16)
CPU Interface AM2 AM2
SLI Technology Yes Yes
NVIDIA LinkBoost Yes Yes
NVIDIA FirstPacket Yes Yes
NVIDIA DualNet Yes Yes
Memory - EPP Yes Yes
Teaming Yes Yes
TCP/IP Acceleration Yes Yes
MediaShield Yes Yes
GPU Ex Yes Yes
Chipset nForce 590 SLI nForce 590 SLI
MCP Voltage Auto, 1.525V ~ 1.700V in .025V increments Normal, + .1V, .2V, .3V
Memory Speeds DDR2 - Auto, 400, 533, 667, 800 DDR2 - Auto, 400, 533, 667, 800
Memory Voltage 1.825V ~ 2.500V, .025V increments Normal, + .1V ~ .7V in .1V increments
Memory Settings tCL, tRAS, tRP, tRCD, tRPD, tRC,
CMD, tWR, tRWT, tWTR, tREF, tRRD,
DQS Skews, Async Latencies,
7 Drive Strength settings
tCL, tRAS, tRP, tRCD, tRPD, tRC,
CMD, tWR, tRWT, tWTR, tREF
PCI Express Speeds 100MHz~200MHz 100MHz~200MHz
HyperTransport Frequency 100MHz~500MHz in various increments 100MHz~500MHz in various increments
HyperTransport Multiplier Auto, 1x, 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x
AM2 to NB, NB to SB
Auto, 1x, 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x
AM2 to NB, NB to SB
HyperTransport Link Width 8/8, 16/16 - NB and SB 8/8, 16/16 - NB and SB
HyperTransport Link Voltage Auto, 1.325V ~ 1.500V in .025V increments Auto, 1.25V, 1.3V, 1.35V, 1.4V
CPU Clock Multiplier Auto, 4x ~ 12x (4800+) Maximum Dependent upon CPU Auto, 4x ~ 12x (4800+) Maximum Dependent upon CPU
CPU Voltage Auto, .3750V to 1.8500V in .025V or .0125V increments Normal, .800V to 1.550V in .025 increments
Memory Slots 4 x 240-pin DIMM Slots
8GB Capacity
4 x 240-pin DIMM Slots
16GB Capacity
Expansion Slots 2 x PCI Express X16
1 x PCI Express X4
1x PCI Express X1
2 x PCI 2.3
2 x PCI Express X16
1 x PCI Express X8
2 x PCI Express X1
2 x PCI 2.3
Onboard SATA 2.0 6 x SATA 3Gb/s Ports - NVIDIA 6 x SATA 3Gb/s Ports - NVIDIA
2 x 3Gb/s Ports - JMicron B363
Onboard SATA 2.0 RAID RAID 0, 0+1, 5, JBOD RAID 0, 0+1, 5, JBOD
Onboard IDE 1 x UltraDMA Connector 133/10/66/33, Two Drive Support 1 x UltraDMA Connector 133/10/66/33, Two Drive Support
Onboard USB2.0 Six via Rear Panel, Four via motherboard headers Four via Rear Panel, Six via motherboard headers
Onboard IEEE-1394a TI TSB82AA2 1394a +
TI TSB81BA3 1394b
TI TSB43AB23 1394a
Onboard LAN 2 GbE - Marvell 88E1121 2 GbE - Marvell 88E1116
Onboard Audio Realtek ALC882D Realtek ALC888
Power Connectors 8-pin ATX, 24-Pin ATX, 4-pin Molex 8-pin ATX, 24-Pin ATX, 4-pin Molex
Back Panel I/O Ports 1 x PS/2 Keyboard
1 x PS/2 Mouse
1 x Audio I/O Panel
2 x RJ45 LAN
6 x USB 2.0
1 x IEEE-1394a and 1394b
1 x PS/2 Keyboard
1 x PS/2 Mouse
1 x Audio I/O Panel
2 x RJ45 LAN
4 x USB 2.0
1 x Parallel Port
1 x Serial Port
1 x S/PDIF Optical Out
1 x IEEE-1394a
NTune 5.0 Support Complete Limited
BIOS Award, P20 Award, F2


Both motherboards use the same chipset, so they both have a Northbridge and Southbridge. They also support X16 bandwidth (4 GBps bidirectional) to both X16 PCI-E slots while less expensive boards based off the nForce 570 SLI chipset have to "make do" with X8 bandwidth when running in SLI/multi-GPU mode. In actual practice, this usually doesn't make more than a slight difference in gaming performance, especially when you consider the fact that the HyperTransport link to the processor only provides enough bandwidth (4 GBps bidirectional) to max out a single X16 connection. We have seen in the past that the "true dual X16" solutions are often a bit faster at high resolutions and detail settings, but the differences are just as likely to come from better BIOS tuning for games as they are from the dual X16 PCI-E implementation.

One of the interesting differences is that the Gigabyte board comes with three X16 slots, although the middle X16 slot only offers X8 bandwidth. As PCI Express cards are downwards and upwards compatible -- i.e., you can run X1, X2, X4, X8, and X16 cards in a physical X16 slot, and you can also use an X16 slot with everything from X1 through X16 data connections -- the inclusion of the third X16 slot could prove useful in the future. ATI has recently talked about the ability to use one of their graphics cards as a physics processing device, so potentially you could move older graphics hardware into the extra slot when you upgrade. Where the Gigabyte board has an extra X16 slot, the Foxconn has an X4 slot, and the Gigabyte board also has an additional X1 slot above the top PEG slot. Using the extra X1 slot may prove somewhat difficult, however, as the large heatsink on the Northbridge will interfere with anything other than a very short X1 card.

There are a few other differences in terms of features. The Gigabyte board is entirely passively cooled, while the Foxconn board has a fan on the Southbridge. (We'll have a bit more to say about the cooling solutions when we get into the specifics of each board.) The Gigabyte board also uses heatpipes connecting the Northbridge to the Southbridge, as well as to a third radiator/heatsink that helps to cool the MOSFETs. Both boards offer six SATA ports provided by the Southbridge, but the Gigabyte board adds a J-Micron chip to provide two additional SATA ports. (All of the SATA ports support 3.0Gbps transfer rates.) The SATA ports on the Gigabyte board also use the new clamp and latch design, and the included SATA cables also support the future; the Foxconn board opts for the more traditional style. Finally, the Gigabyte board has Gigabyte's Dual BIOS feature, which allows recovery from failed flash attempts. The Foxconn board does have a couple extras, though: it has an onboard debug/POST code LED, and it includes onboard reset and power buttons.

Overall, we have to give a slight advantage to the Gigabyte board in terms of features, but the Foxconn board is no slouch either. The deciding factor for many people is going to come down to price and availability, so for the time being the Foxconn board has the lead while we wait for the Gigabyte board to begin shipping. There are also competing offerings from other manufacturers, so we'll hold off declaring a victor until we finish our initial AM2 motherboard reviews. Now let's get to the finer details of these two boards.

Index Foxconn: Board Layout
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  • archcommus - Thursday, June 22, 2006 - link

    As the article conclusion mentions, I have a Epox 9NPA+ right now. Should I stick with this board and socket and just pick up a cheap X2 sometime soon instead of switching to this new platform?
  • JarredWalton - Thursday, June 22, 2006 - link

    Probably. In a month prices should be at much more reasonable levels, and while DDR2-800 with all other parts being more or less equal will be 5-10% faster, unless you're after maximum performance you're better off just upgrading your current CPU to dual core.
  • archcommus - Friday, June 23, 2006 - link

    Thanks. The only crappy part about that is having to invest in another gig of DDR memory instead of putting my money towards DDR2, but I guess if it'd last me all of next year, it's not a big deal.
  • Myrandex - Thursday, June 22, 2006 - link

    I was surprised from reading the specs list that the Foxconn has ieee1394b and the giga-byte doesn't. Traditionally Gigabyte has been the only manufacturer to consistently include this ont heir boards and it was a factor with me in the past wanting Gigabyte motherboards. Those clamp SATA connectors are nice though as the traditional ones are somewhat flimsy.
    Jason
  • R3MF - Thursday, June 22, 2006 - link

    that is an absolute winner, and Gigabyte deserve praise for it.

    i am still waiting for a mATX 570SLI motherboard which has the same third 16x (8x) expansion slot.

    preferably a fourth 1x slot as well, but i appreciate the crusties may want at least one legacy PCI slot.
  • glennpratt - Friday, June 23, 2006 - link

    While I appreciate the thought, there is nothing but video cards and a handful of middle of the road devices that work with PCIe. Kinda sucks.
  • MacGuffin - Thursday, June 22, 2006 - link

    But something strikes me odd: Compare Page 4 of this review with Page 4 of the Biostar/MSI roundup. The HTT Overclocking Charts from the Biostar and the Foxconn are IDENTICAL (except the Memory Settings row: 9x332HTT=DDR2 665/9x332HTT=DDR 664)! Maximum CPU & Maximum FSB are the exact same!

    Max CPU Overclock: 258HTTx12 (3100 MHz) +29%
    Max FSB Overclock: 332HTTx9 (2989 MHz) +66%
  • MacGuffin - Thursday, June 22, 2006 - link

    Also on Page 9, right after the Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory chart,
    "All three of the nForce4 590 SLI"
    Should be nForce 590 SLI.:-)
  • JarredWalton - Thursday, June 22, 2006 - link

    That one I can entirely blame on Dragon NaturallySpeaking... though of course I have to blame my eyes for not catching the extra number as well.
  • MacGuffin - Thursday, June 22, 2006 - link

    Hehe...no problemo. Finish up reviews on MSI K9N Diamond, and ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe within 2 weeks and I won't ask for my money back ;-)

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